Religious Responses to Zoos

leaders of all major world religions met in assisi making statements about how people should act responsibly for the welfare of the Earth, including animals

Ohito Declaration - 1995 conference religious leaders issued

religions recognice the need to treat animals with care

sustaining environmental life is a religious responsibility

nature needs to be treated with care and compassion

Practical Action

RSPCA started in 1824

Islamic foundation for ecology and environmental sciences

Quaker concern for animals

anglician society for the welfare of animals

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Useful Animals

Pets

A pet can provide companionship and a way for expressing affection

Dogs bring many benefits to their owners, including exercise and social contact with other dog walkers

Guide dogs help blind and partially sighted people lead more independant lives

Muslim View:must not be kept in confined spaces or trained to perform tricks. Therefore most muslims don't have pets. However, they can keep working dogs for hunting or guarding their home. They must not be beaten or overworked

Transport & Work

dokeys, mules, camels, horses can be ridden or harnessed to pull goods

elephants in india can be used for logging

horses and dogs are used on the farm, oxen and buffalo pull ploughs

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Transport & Work

For

Helps humans get around to places

"can use animals for our hearts desires" therefore we can use animals to our advantage

Against

animals shouldn't be excessively laboured or put under pressure or pain

forceful and putting pressure on the animal to carry out a task

animals should be treated respectfully - "akrah" (we will be judged on how responsible we have been)

"fitrah" animals used for work is disrupting the natural order and pattern of the universe

MUSLIM BELIEF ON FOOD:

Muslims have food laws that tell them which animals they may eat and *********** them. Muslims eat only halal meat, killed in a humane way 'in the name of Allah, the merciful, the compassionate'. Muslims do not eat pigs. The Qur'an teaches that carrion, blood and pork are forbidden.

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Animals For Food

Some people object to killing animals for meat

Others accept that domesticated animals bred specifically for meat product can be used for food. As long as they are treated well during their lives and killed humanely.

Free-range Farming: farming that allows the animals to roam freely and behave naturally

animals live a more natural life, but the food produced is more expensive to buy

Factory farming: method of raising animals intensively, when animals are used for meat or dairy production, but are kept indoors in very small space

high output of food is produced and a large profit is made

crowded living conditions, kept in the dark, movements are restricted and they cannot mate or graze

may be given growth hormone to grow faster or yield more milk and eggs

waste from such farms can go into human water supplies and rivers, killing fish

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Eating Meat

halal slaughter:muslims must pronounce the name of allah whilst slaughtering, and the blood is allowed to drain

In Britian, animals are usually stunned first and then slaughtered. Muslim methods of halal involves cutting the animal's neck with a sharp knife.Some animals are sent to be slaughtered many miles away from where they were produced. Animals are transported over long distances in cramped, overcrowded conditions without enough food or water. Many die in transit.

vegetarain: doesn't eat meat, poultry and fish

vegan: a person who will not use any animal product

Why might someone be vegetarian?

religion, animal rights, don't want to harm animal

doesn't like the taste of meat, has a specific diet plan

may object to the way meat is produced or transported

vegetables are safer and more organic to eat

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Animals in Sport

greyhound racing, bull fighting, horse racing, polo, showjumping

FOR

Animals feel pain and fear. It is wrong to use them for our entertainment.

animals obtain physical excercise

entertainment for humans

animals recieve care, food and shelter

AGAINST

Sometimes animals get hurt and may feel exhausted / over worked

put under pressure, may get badly beaten by owners

deserve respect, not be used as entertainment

Using them for sport is no worse than killing them for food

ISLAM VIEW: animals have feelings and a reason for living. They may be hunted for food but not for sport. Allah will hold a person accountable if they kill an animal for no useful purpose

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Hunting

once food became easier to get, hunting became a sport rather than a necessity

FOR

Necessary for human survival e.g. amazon tribes, arctic

helps the countryside remove pests like foxes who attack hens

hunting with dogs causes less suffering as it will be quick and fast

being hunted by other animals is a natural way of life for the wild

helps control wild animal population

AGAINST

Unneccesary - animals suffer fear and pain

Parliament made a law 2004 banning hare coursing & hunting with dogs

animal rights: morally wrong to hunt animals for pleasure

animals that escape will be injured

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Fur & Ivory Trade

fur trade: the business of farming or hunting wild animals for their fur to be made into clothing

Ivory trade: the sale of ivory from elephant's tusks often illegally

fur farming became illegal in england and wales in 2000

FOR:

Brought £500 million for the UK economy

fur is a natural renewable source and no endangered species are used

AGAINST:

fur farms keep lots of animals in small individual cages to save their fur from damage, preventing them from natural life